Queen of the Pack
by Erin Salvatore
Summary: AU. Elena Gilbert is a young werewolf in search of a pack. Her search brings her to Mystic Falls, where she meets the dashing alpha male, Damon Salvatore. Little does Elena realize is that she destined to be his mate.
1. Chapter 1

**Queen of the Pack**

**by Erin Salvatore**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. I'm just borrowing.**

_**Note: I got this wild little idea that was originally going to be a Klaroline story, but I changed my mind and made it a Delena story instead, with Klaroline mixed in. The plot is this: Elena Gilbert is a werewolf who lost her pack in a tragedy and is searching for a new one. Her search leads her to Mystic Falls, where she finds a pack led by the dashing alpha male, Damon Salvatore. He is instantly drawn to her from the moment he meets her, having been told by the pack's oracle that she is his destined mate. Don't ask, just take it as it's written.**_

**Chapter 1**

"_You want a love that consumes you. You want passion and adventure, and even a little danger." - Damon to Elena, 3x22, "The Departed"_

_Mystic Falls, Virginia_

The darkness seemed to stretch for miles as Elena Gilbert walked through the woods. For the past two months, she had been on her own, struggling to survive. Elena was a newly turned werewolf and for the moment, she didn't have a pack. The one she was born into met a tragic end, along with her parents, Miranda and Grayson, and her brother, Jeremy. The events of that horrific night played over and over in her head during the course of her journey. While she had been lucky to have survived, it did nothing to ease her pain.

After what seemed an eternity, Elena stopped by a lake and took a drink, not giving a shit what it tasted like, since she was so thirsty. As she drank, her keen hearing alerted her to music playing nearby. Curious, Elena went toward the sound, sniffing the wind as she walked. The scents that reached her nose told her that there was a pack living in the area, which, to her, meant finding a new pack was closer at hand than she thought.

The music got louder as she got closer and when Elena reached the source of the music, she gasped in surprise. It was a party, but for who?

_Probably for the alpha, _she thought. _Of course, I don't really care, since I'm looking for a pack. Hopefully, this pack will accept me as one of them._

"Hey, what are you doing on our land?"

Elena was startled by a voice and looked to see a blonde girl looking at her. She didn't look too pleased to see a stranger on pack lands. _Oh, shit, this isn't what I wanted at all. Easy, Elena, just tell her your purpose here._

"I mean you no harm," she said. "I've been traveling for a long time and I was hoping to get accepted into your pack."

The girl scowled at her, a twinkle of doubt in her blue eyes. "Outsiders who want to join our pack have to have an audience with Damon. He alone decides who gets in."

Elena gulped. "I'm afraid I don't know who this Damon is."

"He's the alpha male of the pack," said the girl. "Since you obviously don't know your way around here, I'll take you to him." Not giving Elena a chance to reply, she added, "A word of caution, stay close to me and don't wander. Your anxiety can sensed by the others, including the unmated males."

Elena nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."

The blonde didn't answer, just walked off. Not to lose track of her, Elena followed her closely and made sure that she didn't wander, keeping her wits about her. This was definitely different from her pack's land, that was for sure. And the blonde she was following, she seemed to have an aggressive air about her. Elena could also detect the tell-tale scent on her, as well as a bite mark on her neck. Was she..recently mated?

Clearing her throat, she said, "I know this isn't any of my business, but I can't help but notice that you have a bite on your neck, as well as the scent of a male on you. Were you mated recently?"

"Yes," the blonde replied. "I'm sure you'll be meeting my mate soon. And don't worry, it's not Damon. The oracle said that he is to be mated soon, but the mate she predicted for him isn't one of the females in the pack."

Elena blinked. What the hell was she talking about? Who was this oracle and what was this prediction of hers all about? While she was certain that everything would be sorted out once she had her audience with Damon, Elena was still very confused.

After a while, they arrived at a stately mansion, which literally blew Elena's mind. _Wow, Damon lives in this place? He must really be a powerful alpha male if he lives in a mansion like this one. No wonder the wolves in this pack respect him somuch. I'm still confused about this oracle I just heard about, though._

Tempted as she was to speak, Elena kept her mouth shut, saving her questions for when she was in Damon's presence.

It didn't take too long before they arrived at the parlor and Elena came face to face with Damon himself. Shit, he was gorgeous, with hair as black as the night, blue eyes that seemed to glow against the light of the fire burning behind him, a body that a woman would have to blind and stupid not to notice and that made the wolf within Elena pant and howl with desire, and lips that she was tempted to kiss and nibble.

"Who is this, Caroline?"

Elena looked at the blonde then. _Caroline. So, that's her name. Well, it's an awfully pretty name for an equally pretty wolf._

"This is an outsider I found a few minutes ago," she replied. "According to her, she is looking to be accepted into our pack. I told her that such a thing could only be possible through you and..."

Damon raised his hand to shush her. "That will be all, Caroline. Leave us. I wish to speak to this outsider in private. I'm pretty sure Klaus is looking for you."

Caroline nodded and, without a word, exited the room, leaving Damon and Elena alone. Elena felt small at that moment, since she had never encountered an alpha as powerful as the one she was standing before. She licked her lips, trying not to be captivated by how unbelievably sexy he was.

"What's your name?"

His question snapped her out of her reverie. "Huh?"

Damon smiled slightly at her. "I asked your name."

Elena shook her head, inwardly punishing herself for her stupidity. "Oh, my name. I'm Elena. Elena Gilbert."

"Well, Elena, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Damon Salvatore, the alpha of this pack as Caroline no doubt pointed out to you. Please, don't let her intimidate you. She only does that to protect me from those who wish to harm me." He approached her and carefully sniffed her. "And I can tell that you have no intentions of that."

Elena panted as she caught a whiff of his scent. Shit, this man was sex on a stick, and the fact that the black shirt he was wearing was unbuttoned, revealing his chest to her, which looked like it had been carved by the angels themselves, didn't help matters much.

"I also sense that you're nervous," he said, a seductive whisper to his tone. "Don't be. I mean you no harm, just like you mean me no harm."

Elena gulped. "I'm sorry. It's just that I've never been in the presence of an alpha male before. In fact, I never had an audience of the alpha of the pack I lived in before this. Of course, no one else ever saw him either. He was virtually invisible and..."

Damon gently placed his finger on her lips. "Shhh. It's okay, Elena, there's no need to be nervous around me. As I said before, I mean you no harm."

He stepped back to admire her. She was certainly beautiful, with long, dark brown hair that seemed to have a heavenly glow in it, sensuous brown eyes, a body that he was tempted to caress as he had hot, passionate, primal sex with her, claiming her as his own, and lips he wanted to kiss. Damn it, his wolf howled with desire just looking at her.

"Do you have a place to stay, Elena?"

Elena shook her head. "No."

"Well, starting tonight, that's all going to change," said Damon. "You can stay here with me."

Elena blinked. Was he serious? "Damon, you can't mean that. I can't accept that. We barely know each other and..."

"You'll have your own room," said Damon, gently brushing her cheek with his finger. "I promise you, Elena, I won't do anything you don't want me to do to you. I want to get to know you, take things slow."

Elena gulped and was about to say something when she was interrupted by the arrival of a man younger than Damon, with short, dark blonde hair that was slicked up compared to Damon's wild locks that hung freely, green eyes, and wearing clothes that matched his youthful appearance.

"Ah, Stefan, perfect timing. This is Elena, she's going to be living here with us."

The young man, named Stefan, tilted his head in curiosity. "This is unexpected, brother. You haven't had a female in the house in a long time." He blinked. "This wouldn't have anything with what the oracle said, would it?"

The oracle. There was that word again. "Who's the oracle? Caroline mentioned it earlier."

"Her name is Bonnie and she's usually right about things concerning the pack," said Stefan. "In fact, she's predicted that Damon will be mated soon, and that his mate won't be any of the females in the pack, but someone different."

Elena nodded slowly, still confused, but accepting what Stefan said. Perhaps, she'd know all the answers soon, but for now, she'd take this one step at a time.

_**Note: Yeah, this is something new. Don't worry, there will be romance in here, I'm building up to it. And Elena will learn what her destiny is.**_

_**Reviews are love!**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. I'm just borrowing.**

_**Note: Previously, in "Queen of the Pack," Elena arrives in Mystic Falls, where she meets Damon, the dashing alpha male of a pack that lives in the area, and it is arranged that she stay with him because she doesn't have a place to stay.**_

_**Thanks for the wonderful reviews so far! You guys are awesome!**_

_Later on..._

Caroline sensed that Klaus was tense as she held him close in their bed and wondered what could be causing it. He seemed fine when she came to their room an hour ago and while they were making love, so why was he so tense now?

"Klaus, what's wrong?"

Klaus looked at her. "I'd be lying if I said I was fine, so I won't. Truth is, Caroline, I hate being a beta. I'm older, stronger, wiser. Damon should be following me, not the other way around."

"What are you saying?" said Caroline. "You want to be the alpha? But, Klaus, to talk of a coup is treason, and that's punishable by death. I know that you're older than Damon and think that you should be in charge, but how are you going to take over? Everyone is so loyal to Damon."

"Ah, but you shouldn't count me out just yet, my dear," said Klaus. "Even the most loyal of followers can be swayed to turn against him. I just need to figure out what Damon's weakness and then, I can expose it."

"I think I already know what his weakness is," said Caroline. "Her name is Elena, and she just arrived a few hours ago. She's the one that Bonnie predicted would become Damon's mate, but she doesn't know it yet."

"Really?" said Klaus. "Well, that does present me with the perfect opportunity." He saw the look on Caroline's face and added, "Sorry, _us_ with the perfect opportunity. If we take Elena away from Damon, he'll do anything to get her back, including giving the leadership of the pack over to us."

"It's not going to be easy," said Caroline. "He'll no doubt have her guarded like a treasure."

Klaus smiled. "But, that can be rectified."

Caroline scowled. "Rectified? How so?"

"You can lure Elena away from her protection detail," said Klaus. "Then, once you're out of their sight range, I'll make my move and we'll take her hostage and use her as leverage against Damon. If he knows what's good for him, he'll give control of the pack over to us."

"And if he refuses?"

"If he refuses, Elena will die," said Klaus. "Unless he wants her death to be on conscience, it will be in his best interest to do exactly as we tell him."

"You're quite a clever man, Klaus," said Caroline. "No wonder I love you so much."

"Thank you, darling," said Klaus. "This plan of ours is guaranteed to work. Before the next full moon, _we'll_ be the leaders of this pack." He brushed her cheek with his finger. "Then, we can leave this hell hole and go wherever you like. Paris, Rome, Tokyo, it doesn't matter. Not as long as we're together."

Caroline smiled and kissed him passionately. She was confident that their plan would work. Truth be told, she had been wanting to leave Mystic Falls for quite a while now and this would be the perfect opportunity for her do so.

_Elsewhere..._

Elena tossed and turned in her sleep, moaning as she relived the memory of her pack being slaughtered. Finally, she couldn't stand it anymore and forced herself awake, screaming and cold sweat poured down her face.

No sooner did she wake up than the light came on and Damon walked into the room, a look of concern on his face and sensing her fear.

"Elena, what happened? Are you all right?"

Elena panted as she looked at him. "No, I'm not. I just can't seem to shake the image of them dying around me."

Damon tilted his head in curiosity. "Who?"

"The pack I lived in before I came here," said Elena. "I saw it happen and I escaped before they came after me. I've been running for the past two months ever since, looking for a place to hide and to be part of a new pack." Her eyes went wide. "Oh God, you don't suppose they followed me, do you?"

"I won't let anyone hurt you, Elena, you have my word," said Damon. "If whoever killed your old pack wants you, they're going to have a hell of a fight on their hands."

"No, Damon, I can't ask you to do that," said Elena. "You could get killed."

"I don't care," said Damon. "I want to protect you, no matter what the cost. You've been special to me since the moment you walked into this mansion." He walked over to the bed and sat down next to her, pulling her into his arms. "You're safe here, I promise you."

Elena said nothing and buried her face in Damon's chest, sobbing. For some strange reason, she felt safe in his arms. Hell, he even smelled safe and something told her that she should trust him with her life.

_**Note: I know this update is short, but here it is, the next chapter of "Queen of the Pack." Stay tuned!**_

_**ENJOY THE UPDATE AND REMEMBER TO REVIEW!**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. I'm just borrowing.**

_**Note: Previously, in "Queen of the Pack," Caroline and Klaus plan to stage a coup against Damon for leadership of the pack. Meanwhile, Elena has a nightmare about her old pack getting slaughtered and Damon comforts her.**_

_**Thank you for the reviews and I apologize for the delay in updates (the last update being July 4), but I hit a bit of a dry spell and ideas didn't come as fast as they used to. Anyway, I've re-read the first two chapters to get caught up and now that I know where I left off, I can continue!**_

_**LET THE MADNESS CONTINUE!**_

_Next Day..._

Elena moaned softly as she woke up the next morning. She couldn't remember when she had fallen asleep again, but she somehow managed to sleep through the night without having another nightmare. A familiar scent caused her to look over and she saw Damon asleep next to her, holding her tightly in his arms. She smiled as she remembered him comforting her and how sweet and gentle he had been. Truth be hold, during the other times she had that nightmare, she always woke up alone and scared. However, she felt safe and protected with Damon here. Taking a chance, Elena kissed him softly. She went to pull away, but Damon pulled her to him, returning her kiss. When they finally broke it a few minutes later, he smiled as he looked into her brown eyes with his blue ones.

"Morning. Feeling better?"

Elena nodded. "Much better, thank you." She blushed slightly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to kiss you like that. I just...wanted to tell you how much I appreciated you staying with me last night."

"Hey, don't apologize," he replied. "I appreciated the kiss. And there's no need to thank me. The fact that you slept through the night without waking up crying and in a cold sweat is all the thanks I need." He smiled again. "You hungry?"

Elena licked her lips. "Starving, actually." Curiously, she added, "Wait, do you mean for food or for something else?"

Damon laughed. "I meant for food, though I do like the fact that you're comfortable enough to ask if I wanted sex." He kissed her softly. "But, like I said, I won't force you. We'll do it when you're ready, and it's going to be epic."

"I'm amazed just how patient you're being," said Elena, returning his kiss. "Any other male would be all over me by now. But, not you. You're a gentleman about this, and that's a rare quality in an alpha."

"My mother raised me to treat a lady with respect, and you deserve all the respect in the world,"  
said Damon. "All this is new for you, and you're going to need time to adjust." He kissed her again. "Take all the time you need. I'm not going anywhere, not unless you're with me."

Elena giggled. She was really starting to like Damon, and not just because he was being so sweet to her, even though that definitely counted as one of the reasons. No, she liked him because he made her feel safe. After a few minutes, Damon got up out of the bed and extended her hand to her.

"Let's go down to the kitchen and see if we can't get some breakfast."

Elena nodded and took his hand, letting him lead her down to the kitchen, where he sat her down on one of the stools by the counter as he went about making her breakfast. Elena smiled as she watched him and giggled again when she saw him start to dance as he went about preparing the food. Damon heard her giggle and looked at her.

"You like that, huh?"

Elena had a slight giggle to her tone as she said, "Yeah. I think it's cute the way you're shaking your ass as you dance."

Damon smiled as he then went over to her and lifted her off the stool. "In that case, how about joining me?"

"Damon, I can't dance."

"It's okay, I won't judge you," he replied. "It's not about knowing the steps, it's about having fun."

Elena nodded and felt him pull her close to him as they danced around the kitchen. As they continued to dance, Elena could feel all of her insecurities melt away and nothing mattered except being in Damon's arms, moving to an imaginary beat. Damon saw her smiling again and heard her giggle as he twirled her and then pulled her back toward him. Never in his life had he felt this alive, and he knew that Elena was making him feel this way.

When the dance ended, they panted as they looked into each other's eyes. Then, before they could stop it, they leaned in and shared a deep and passionate kiss. Damon growled playfully against Elena's lips as the kiss got deeper and hotter. God, he wanted her with something fierce and he didn't know why. Before the kisses got too persistent, Elena pulled back and licked her lips, which were slightly swollen from making out.

"What are we doing?"

"I think we were kissing."

"I know that," she replied. "But, I thought you wanted to wait?"

"To hell with waiting," said Damon, a growl to his tone. "Elena, I want you. I want you so badly right now, you have no idea. I'll be gentle, I promise."

Elena never got to answer him because he kissed her again and lifted her up, carrying her back upstairs and instead of going to her room, they went into his room, where he kicked the door shut with his foot, locking it for privacy before carrying her over to the bed, gently depositing her onto the mattress and following after her, kissing her even more as he pulled her camisole top up over her head. He licked his lips when he saw that she didn't have a bra on and moved down to kiss her breasts, licking the tender nipples with his tongue.

Elena arched her back and practically howled as she felt his hot breath on her skin. Damon smiled against her breast as he heard her howl with pleasure before pulling back momentarily to pull his T-shirt off, throwing it onto the floor with her discarded camisole top and leaning back down to kiss down from the valley between her breasts to her belly button, which he licked playfully with his tongue, and then pulled down her pajama bottoms, along with her panties, throwing them on the floor.

"You're so beautiful," he panted. "You're so beautiful and you're mine."

He then removed his boxers and spread Elena's legs apart before grabbing her hips and sticking his throbbing cock into her core, groaning at just how a good a fit he was in her and began to thrust slowly so that she could get used to him, increasing his speed a little as he moved up to kiss her. Elena returned his kiss and wrapped her arms around his neck as she gyrated her hips in time with his thrusts, making sure to keep in sync with him as they moved. It was while they were moving that Damon broke through her hymen, taking her virginity, slowing down just a bit. Elena noticed him slowing down and looked at him.

"Damon, what's wrong? Why did you stop? Did I do anything wrong?"

Damon shook his head. "No, _cara mia_, you did nothing wrong. I know that you're a virgin and the first time is always uncomfortable for the woman."

"It's okay, really," said Elena. "It did hurt a little, but then, I felt nothing but pleasure after that. Keep going, I want you to."

Damon licked his lips, his blue eyes glazed over with lust and love, and began to thrust again, a little faster and harder this time. He felt himself getting close to the edge and threw his head back in a pleasurable howl, feeling his fangs pop out. He then leaned down and bit her shoulder, marking her as his mate.

_**Note: Better late than never, huh? Thought I'd make this chapter heavy on the Delena, complete with smut. Stay tuned!**_

_**ENJOY THE UPDATE AND REMEMBER TO REVIEW!**_


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. I'm just borrowing. Only the story belongs to me.**

_**Note: Previously, in "Queen of the Pack," Damon mates with Elena after protecting her from her nightmare.**_

_That Evening..._

Elena stole curious glances at Damon as they made their way to what looked like a temple on the Salvatore property. Obviously, Damon was planning something if he was bringing them here. The question was, just what was he planning? When they were half way there, Elena decided to ask Damon what this was all about. If she was going to be living here, she had to know just what she was getting herself into, especially now that she was mated to him.

"What are we doing here, Damon?"

"We're here to see the oracle," he replied. "Remember? The one that you were curious about the first night you arrived here?"

"Yes, I do," said Elena. "Though, I wasn't expecting to be having an audience with her."

"She predicted that I would find my mate, and that she wouldn't be from around here," said Damon. "Today, her prediction came true, and I wanted to confirm it." He smiled at her. "And I think she'll be most interested in meeting you, Elena."

"I find _that_ hard to believe," said Elena. "Kindly remember, I'm still new here, whether we were destined for each other or not."

"I haven't forgotten that," said Damon. "Another thing I haven't forgotten was just how happy you made me since we mated." He took her hand, brought it to his lips and kissed her knuckles before moving to her lips. "I love you, Elena."

Elena smiled against his lips and returned his kiss. She never really knew what true love was until she met Damon, and she didn't regret becoming his mate. They reluctantly broke the kiss and then continued their journey to the temple. Upon arrival, they walked inside, keeping a firm grip on each other's hands. After what seemed like a long walk, they arrived at a room that looked like it was covered in ancient Egyptian hierogylphs and had a large black cauldron in the middle. No sooner did they arrive than a woman stepped out from behind the cauldron.

"Damon," she said. "It's been a while since you last came to see me, my alpha. What brings you here tonight?"

"I know it's been a while, Bonnie, and I apologize," he replied. "I came here tonight because I have something to tell you. Your prediction came true."

"It has?" said Bonnie. "But, that's impossible. I made that prediction months ago. It couldn't have come true in _that_ short amount of time."

"It could and it has," said Damon. "To prove it, I want to introduce my mate to you." He presented Elena. "Bonnie, this is Elena Gilbert, the one that your prediction spoke of. Elena, this is Bonnie, the oracle that set this whole thing in motion."

Elena gave Bonnie a friendly smile. "It's nice to meet you, Bonnie."

"Likewise, Elena," she replied. "I congratulate you on mating with Damon. Not only is he the alpha of this pack, but he's also a very strong and capable fighter. You'll always be safe knowing that you have him on your side."

Elena was about to reply when suddenly, she noticed that Bonnie was placing her index and middle fingers on her temples. Damon noticed the same thing, wondering just what the hell was going on. He knew that Bonnie was prone to getting psychic visions from time to time, one of which being the prediction that he'd meet his mate, but this was a bit disturbing.

"Bonnie? Bonnie, talk to me," he said. "What's going on?"

Elena got nervous, especially since she wasn't sure why this was happening, and after she just met the oracle that was responsible for her and Damon being together. A few minutes later, Bonnie removed her fingers from her temples, looking at the two nervous wolves.

"Damon, I think there is trouble within the pack."

"Trouble?" he replied. "What kind of trouble?"

"Klaus is planning to betray you and take over as alpha," said Bonnie. "Apparently, he doesn't like being the beta anymore and thinks that things will be better under his rule." She looked at Elena. "Part of his plan involves kidnapping Elena."

"That lunatic has another thing coming to him if he thinks I'm going to surrender leadership of the pack to him," said Damon. "And why would he suddenly plan this now?"

"I don't know," said Bonnie. "My best guess is that he's had this plan in mind for months now, probably around the same time I predicted that you and Elena would meet." She looked at the mark on Elena's neck. "Now that you two are mated, Klaus will have something more to play with."

"I don't understand," said Elena. "Why would Klaus suddenly take interest in me? He doesn't even know me." Her eyes widened. "Unless he found out about me through Caroline. She is his mate, after all, and she probably tells him everything."

"Caroline, I might've known," said Damon. "Well, that doesn't matter to me right now." He looked at Elena. "What does matter is keeping you safe, as well as making sure Klaus doesn't put his plan into action."

Elena said nothing to that, just nodded. She still had no idea why Klaus would be after her, but she knew that she could trust Damon to protect her. Plus, she was pretty strong herself, so if necessary, she could also defend herself. She had to learn after her old pack was slaughtered and she was living on her own. It was either that or die and since she didn't want to die, she chose to defend herself.

_**Note: Better late than never, huh? I was persuaded to update from a guest reviewer and because I didn't want her to beg, I honored her request. Stay tuned!**_

_**ENJOY THE UPDATE AND REMEMBER TO REVIEW!**_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 6**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. I'm just borrowing.**

_**Note: Previously, in "Queen of the Pack," Elena meets Bonnie, the oracle, and learns of a coup planned by Klaus, Damon's beta.**_

_Salvatore Mansion – After the Audience with Bonnie..._

Stefan was watching the window carefully, keeping an eye out for his brother and Elena. When he finally saw them, he opened the door and let them in. However, he saw that they weren't exactly happy, which made him nervous. Something must've happened while they were at Bonnie's, even though he didn't know for sure what it was.

"What happened? Why are you guys so serious?"

Damon looked at his brother. "Bonnie told us about a coup that Klaus has been planning for months."

"Klaus is planning to betray you?" said Stefan. "But, why would he do that? I thought he respected you?"

"He was _pretending_ to respect me," said Damon. "What's worse, Caroline is in on it too. So, neither one of them is to be trusted...for anything." He sighed. "I'm going to call a pack council meeting tonight and inform them about the impending coup. We need to be on high alert and make sure that Klaus doesn't put his plan into action."

Stefan nodded. "Okay."

With that, he walked away, leaving Damon and Elena alone. Once the younger Salvatore was gone, Damon looked at Elena. "You have my word that I won't let anything happen to you, Elena. It's my solemn vow as your mate."

"I know that you'll protect me, Damon," she replied. "I can protect myself too. I'm pretty strong."

Damon nodded and approached her, pulling her into his arms. "I wasn't doubting your strength, my love. It's just that sometimes, two is better than one, and believe me, when you're up against a pair like Klaus and Caroline, you're going to need someone watching your back."

Elena rested her head on Damon's shoulder, his scent mixing in with her own, and sighed. It was quiet between them for a few minutes until she said, "Does Klaus have any connections within the pack council?"

"He does have a few, which include his brothers, Elijah, Kol, Finn, Henrik, and his sisters, Rebekah, who happens to be Stefan's mate, and Hayley, who is mated to Tyler," said Damon. "Why?"

"I'm only asking because if Klaus has connections in the pack council, it might make it difficult to present your case to them."

Damon nodded, knowing that she had a point. Presenting his case to the pack council was going to be difficult because of Klaus' connections. "You're right, they're going to be in favor of the coup, _especially_ Rebekah and Kol. I'll have to be careful about how I word everything."

"Maybe you won't _have_ to word everything carefully," said Elena. "Maybe if you appeal to Elijah and Finn, they'll be more likely to side with _you_ instead of Klaus, which will even things out."

Damon stepped back and looked at her, smiling. "Elena, you're a genius! If I get Elijah and Finn to side with me, that'll make things difficult for Klaus to go through with the coup." He kissed her. "I love you so much, you know that?"

Elena nodded and returned his kiss. "I do, and I love you too."

_Meanwhile..._

Little did Elena and Damon know that a white wolf was just outside the window, watching them and listening to their conversation. Then, once she had heard enough, she hurried off into the woods. A few minutes later, she arrived at Klaus' mansion and entered through the special door he had installed for her to gain easy access. Klaus was standing by the fire place in the living room when he sensed her and turned around.

The white wolf then turned into Caroline, who didn't waste a second in telling him what she found out. "Damon found out about the coup we're planning."

"Bonnie's doing, no doubt," he replied. "What else did you find out while you were spying, love?"

"There's going to be a special pack council meeting to discuss a way to discourage the coup," said Caroline. "I think he's going to get Elijah and Finn to side with him, which is going to make things difficult for us."

"We _still_ have Rebekah, Hayley, Kol, and Henrik on our side, so it shouldn't be _too_ difficult."

"What about Rebekah and Hayley's mates, Stefan and Tyler?" said Caroline. "Suppose _they_ side with Damon?"

"Stefan will naturally side with Damon, since they're brothers," said Klaus. "Tyler, on the other hand, won't be a problem. Hayley will make sure he stays loyal to us."

_**Note: Yeah, I didn't sound redundant, so I thought I'd end Chapter 5 here. Stay tuned!**_


End file.
